A total of 160 students from families victimized by Agent Orange from northern provinces received scholarships uring a July 31 ceremony in Hanoi organized by Tuoi Tre newspaper and Hanoi Red Cross.

Each student received a VND2 million (US$100) scholarship and presents from sponsors.

Speaking at the scholarship presentation ceremony, President of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA), Senior Lieutenant-General Nguyen Van Rinh, said the scholarships will support the students.

To date, Vietnam houses an estimated three million Agent Orange victims.

Each student received a VND2 million (US$100) scholarship and presents from sponsors.

Speaking at the scholarship presentation ceremony, President of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA), Senior Lieutenant-General Nguyen Van Rinh, said the scholarships will support the students.

To date, Vietnam houses an estimated three million Agent Orange victims.

WASHINGTON, July 15, 2010 (AFP) – At 23, Tran Thi Hoan dreams the dreams of a typical young woman: find a good job, start a family and, as a native of a country long ravaged by war, live in peace.

But Hoan is a victim of Agent Orange, the herbicide laced with dioxin-tainted defoliant that was sprayed across huge swaths of Vietnam between in the 1960s and early 1970s, and she fears that she could pass on the poison that saw her born without legs and with a withered hand to her children.

So she’s let go of part of her dream.

“Maybe my children will be disabled like me. So I don’t believe I can get married,” Hoan told AFP after she became the first Vietnamese victim of Agent Orange to testify before the US Congress.

Hoan had just read a three-page testimony in English to US lawmakers in a packed hearing room.

“I am not unique, but am one of hundreds of thousands of people whose lives have been marked by our parents’ or grandparents’ exposure to Agent Orange,” she said.

“I was born as you see me: without legs and missing a hand.”

But in spite of her handicap, and in spite of her fears that nobody would want her as a wife, Hoan old the packed hearing called by Congressman Eni Faleomavaega, a veteran of Vietnam, to try to determine how to meet the needs of Vietnam’s victims of Agent Orange, that she was “one of the lucky ones.”

“I’m missing limbs, but my mental functioning is fine,” she said.

Some Agent Orange victims do nothing but sleep, she said. Others fall ill with a slight temperature change. Still others die young, at age 10.

“Many babies, children and young people live lives of quiet agony. They are trapped in bodies that do not work. Their brains remain in infancy even as their bodies grow.”

The American Public Health Panel estimates that some 77 million liters of herbicides, including 49.3 million liters of Agent Orange containing dioxin-contaminated defoliants, were sprayed over 5.5 million acres (2.23 million hectares) in what was then South Vietnam by the United States military.

The aim was to destroy the densely wooded hiding places of the North Vietnamese enemy.

Today, Agent Orange and dioxin, which is known to increase the risk of cancer, immune deficiency disease, and reproductive and developmental disorders, still contaminates the land and water.

Vietnamese medical doctor Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong told the hearing that studies she has conducted have found that up to 4.1 million Vietnamese were directly exposed to Agent Orange during the war and more than three million have suffered its effects.

Babies are exposed through their mother’s breast milk. Others have been exposed by living in or near contaminated areas called “hotspots,” such as Danang, where the United States had a base during the war.

The United States, which reestablished diplomatic ties with Vietnam 15 years ago, is funding a program to “remediate” dioxin at Danang, or burn it at ultra-high temperatures of 350 degrees Celsius (662 Fahrenheit), which causes it to vaporize.

Not doing anything would mean dioxin, which has a half-life of 100 years — meaning it will take 100 years for it to fall to half its initial strength — would still be tainting the land and people’s lives next century.

“My gosh,” said Faleomavaega, “We’ll all be dead and it’ll still be there.”

Though Hoan’s life has been marked by an event that happened decades before her birth, she insisted Agent Orange victims have to look to the future.

“We can look at the past and see the consequences of war, but we don’t want to stay in the past. We have to look to the future and see what we can do,” she told AFP.

And she added another wish to her wish-list.

“We want those responsible for the terrible consequences of Agent Orange to hear our pain and respond to us as humans,” she said, speaking not only for Vietnamese victims but for “the children and grandchildren of Americans who were exposed to Agent Orange and who are suffering like us.”

In the audience, a veteran of the Iraq war cried. Another applauded quietly.

One of the chemical companies that made Agent Orange, Dow, says on its website that manufacturers were compelled by the government to produce the herbicide.

In 2007, Dow said there was no evidence to link Agent Orange to Vietnam veterans’ illnesses.

And last year, a US embassy spokeswoman in Hanoi said there has been no internationally-accepted scientific study establishing a link between Agent Orange and Vietnam’s disabled and deformed.

Tran Xuan Thu, General Secretary of Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), said US attitude towards solving the AO/dioxin dilemma in Vietnam has become more positive.

Tran Xuan Thu, who is also VAVA Vice President, said at an interview with VNA on the threshold of the third hearing on Agent Orange to be held by the US House of Representatives on July 15.

The hearing session aims to consider steps to be taken to meet demand from Vietnamese AO/dioxin victims and those exposed to the toxic chemical sprayed by US troops during the war in Vietnam.

Thu told VNA that the campaign in support of Vietnamese AO/dioxin victims that has been running in all the four available channels has contributed to a shift in the US attitude towards the problem, not only in words but also in action.

The campaign, involving the Vietnamese and US governments, Vietnam-US Dialogue Group on AO/dioxin, the VAVA and progressive world forces, has helped bring about modest changes to the attitude of not only the US public but also politicians, he said.

First of all, the US side, for example, including politicians, has acknowledged and talked about AO victims more openly and no longer considers them as simply the disabled. Secondly, the US side has offered technological and financial solutions to detoxify a hotbed of dioxin in the central city of Danang.

Most recently in June, the Vietnam-US negotiation team has worked out a plan of action with a budget of some US$300 million for 10 years to prioritize healthcare for AO victims and clean up the environment.

Representing three million victims in Vietnam, VAVA expressed thanks to the negotiation team for their tireless efforts in contributing to solid solutions to this legacy in Vietnam, said the AO watchdog leader.

Thanks were expressed not only for humanitarian reasons but also in an effort to boost relations between the two countries, Thu added.

“The $300 million plan is worthy of respect at a point when Vietnam is poor and victims’ need is huge,” he said.

However, he emphasized the scheme is far from meeting what is needed for the problem in relation to human beings and the environment.

“Vietnamese AO victims are looking for the deployment of the program as soon as possible,” Thu emphasized.

Charles Bailey, Director of the Ford Foundation Special Initiative on Agent Orange/dioxin, and Susan Berresford, former Ford Foundation President, both confirmed that it was quite possible to solve the AO impact on humans and the environment in Vietnam.

However, they acknowledged the need for significant financial resources. They asked the US government to play a key role in meeting this financial demand and work with other donors to help the Vietnamese government and people address the problem.

Tom Harkin, who chairs the US Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, shared sympathy with AO victims on their sufferings and losses during his visit to Vietnam in early July. He also emphasized that the US should consider solving the AO problem in Vietnam because of the issue of moral responsibility of those who had caused the problem.

The AO issue was not only the pain of Vietnam but also of many families in the US , said the US senator.

Hearing sessions held by the US House of Representatives and the International People’s Tribunal of Conscience as well as the consistent support raised by progressive world forces have contributed considerably to AO victims’ struggle for justice.

Eni F. H. Faleomaveaga, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment of the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, who summoned the upcoming hearing, also launched and chaired the previous two sessions in May, 2008 and June, 2009.

Unlike the previous two sessions, the upcoming hearing will include VAVA representatives and the victims themselves. They are medical doctor Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, VAVA Vice President, and Tran Thi Hoan, a second generation victim, who lost two legs and one hand. The 23-year-old girl is a student of the Ho Chi Minh City Foreign Language and Information Technology University.

Thu concluded the interview by expressing wishes on behalf of three million Vietnamese AO victims that the hearing with the first-ever presence of Vietnamese AO victims would promote a US sense of responsibility towards the problem and push the US to take another step forwards in finding a solution to the problem.

The Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment of the US House of Representatives’ Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing on Agent Orange (AO) in Vietnam, in Washington on July 15.

“It’s a good hearing,” said Eni Faleomavaega, Chairman of the subcommittee.

In an interview with Vietnam News Agency’s reporter in the US, Congressman Faleomavaega added that the testimonies and answers given by Matthew Palmer, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US Department of State’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs; and John Wilson, Director of the Office of Technical Support under US Agency for International Development’s Bureaus for Asia and the Middle East, helped US congressmen be better educated and better informed of the US-Vietnam cooperation in addressing the problems relating to AO victims in Vietnam, so that US law makers could have more information in considering more funding for relating programmes.

Faleomavaega, who called and presided over the first US Congress hearing on Agent Orange in Vietnam in May 2008 and the second in June 2009, described the testimony by Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Association for Victims of AO/Dioxin (VAVA), as scientifically great, and that by Tran Thi Hoan, a Vietnamese AO victim as informative about the lives of Vietnamese AO victims as well as their call to international communities. He said the two Vietnamese witnesses helped the people in the US in general and US congressmen in particular get more interest into consequences of AO/dioxin.

In his testimony before the Subcommittee, Matthew Palmer said over the last several years, the United States has worked with Vietnam to ensure that its AO activities align with Vietnamese health and environmental objectives. “This cooperation has brought us closer than ever to the permanent elimination of dioxin at Danang Airport due to AO and has allowed us to provide much-needed assistance to vulnerable populations,” he said.

The Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary added: “AO has long been a sensitive topic in US-Vietnam relations, and we have had some past challenges reaching agreement on how and where to cooperate, but we are now transforming dialogue into tangible improvements in the environment and health of the people of Vietnam.”

He reaffirmed that: “The United States Government has demonstrated a firm commitment on working to find a resolution to this lingering concern and to ensuring the continued improvement of US-Vietnam relations.”

A memorandum sent by the US Congressional Research Service to the sponsor Subcommittee wrote: “The Vietnamese government has sought US Agent Orange-related assistance since the two nations reestablished diplomatic recognition 15 years ago. Initially, the U.S. Government denied any legal liability to provide assistance, and questioned Vietnam’s assertions about the extent of environmental and health problems associated with AO/dioxin.”

According to the congressional agency, the US stance on the issue created some tensions in bilateral relations, though not enough to prevent greatly expanded diplomatic, economic and military relations.

Taking the floor of the hearing, John Wilson said that despite economic growth, Vietnam still faces significant environmental and development challenges, including dioxin contamination “hotspots” at various locations around the country. He added: “While we celebrate the progress that we have made over the past 15 years, we also recognise that the US can do more, including with respect to dioxin remediation, which will have a significant benefit to our bilateral relations.”

The official from the US Agency for International Development called the Congress for continuous commitment to dioxin remediation in Vietnam and called on the US to “be a leader on this issue and make a significant impact on the lives of many Vietnamese.”

The VAVA Vice Chairwoman Ngoc Phuong called on US congressmen to continue the work begun by the US veterans groups and other American NGOs to decisively heal the wounds of war for Vietnam’s more than 3 million AO/dioxin victims by providing resources for comprehensive medical services, regular care, rehabilitation and educational services and facilities; as well as with funding to remediate those areas in Vietnam that continue to contain high level of dioxin to stop as soon as possible exposure for people living around those “hot spots”; and requiring those chemical companies which manufactured AO to recognise responsibility and assist the victims.

She stressed that: “Timely and effective actions taken by the US Congress to help victims of AO/dioxin in Vietnam are the final steps in healing the wounds of war as our two peoples and nations continue to build a relationship of friendship and peace.”

Phuong, who has twice attended US Congress hearing on AO/dioxin in Vietnam, told Vietnam News Agency’s reporter that the invitation of a VAVA representative and a Vietnamese AO victim to attend the third hearing reflected some changes in the US side’s attitude on the link between AO and the health of people in Vietnam.

Being Vietnam’s first AO victim invited to US Congress hearing, the 23-year-old Hoan expressed the hope that US chemical manufacturers which made the AO and the US government who sprayed and dumped the toxic substance in Vietnam should do the right thing to help victims of terrible consequences of AO. She stressed, “It is a matter of justice and humanity”.

She called on the US people and their representatives to reach out hands in friendship and understanding to help make dreams of having a family, getting a job and having a peaceful life by young AO victims in Vietnam come true.

Orange France Telecom grants more scholarships for young talents in Vietnam

QĐND – Wednesday, April 14, 2010, 22:58 (GMT+7)

Orange France Telecom, a world’s leading telecom supplier, today, April 14th, presented six masters scholarships and two on-the-job training courses to talented students from the masters programme, titled “Information, Systems and Technology, the University of Technology” under the Vietnam National University, Hanoi for 2010-2011 period.

This is the fourth continuous year the French supplier has granted scholarships with an aim of supporting Vietnamese IT talent under the Vietnam and France Governmental Cooperation Project of French University Centers in Vietnam.

Such a project aims to enhance the quality of the tertiary and post- graduate education in Vietnam.

The two-year master scholarships are given to needy students and the on-the-job training courses will offer students opportunities to gain more experience during the time working in Orange’s labs in France under instruction by Orange’s leading experts.

As many as 65 Vietnamese students have been awarded Orange’s scholarships and on-the-job training courses so far. Many of them have obtained valuable expertise which in turn partly contributed to Vietnam’s IT development.

Orange France Telecom plans to grant an additional six on-the-job training courses and eighteen scholarships to the best students of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City Universities of Technology, Vietnam National University in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City by the end of this year.

A seminar was held in Quang Ngai province on April 5 to discuss the consequences of Agent Orange/Dioxin on the environment and people’s health.

This was part of a project carried out by the Hanoi Public Medicine University in coordination with the Quang Ngai provincial Department for Health to provide assistance to victims of toxic chemicals sprayed by US troops during the war in Vietnam.

In his report, Professor-Doctor Le Ngoc Trong, an adviser in the project, described the US’s chemical warfare in Vietnam was the cruelest in human history.

He said that during the war, the US forces sprayed 72 million litres of toxic chemicals over 2,600 million hectares of land and forest, accounting for more than 10 percent of southern Vietnam.

Participants at the seminar also discussed measures for rehabilitation of Agent Orange victims.

Doctor Tran Trong Hai from the Hanoi Public Medicine University raised a project on functional rehabilitation for Agent Orange victims from 2008 to 2010 in Thai Binh, Quang Ngai and Dong Nai provinces, at a total cost of VND25 billion.

According to recent statistics from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Quang Ngai now has 16,000 people with disabilities suffering Agent Orange infection. The province and relevant agencies have mobilised tens of millions of Vietnam dong, built nearly 300 charity houses and provided free healthcare services for about 5,000 local Agent Orange victims. At present, more than 4,000 families of Agent Orange victims are still living below the poverty line.

Paris (VNA) – A documentary focusing on the use of Agent Orange/dioxin in Vietnam has been screened as part of an international film festival in Paris, France.

The documentary is an entry in the 26 th international environmental film festival, currently taking place in Paris.

The film, produced by Sakata Masako and Bill Megalos and entitled “Agent Orange: personal requiem” is based on the experiences of Japanese director Masako’s husband Greg Davis, who was an American war veteran and journalist who died four years ago of liver cancer – a consequence of exposure to Agent Orange while serving in the war in Vietnam.

Masako visited Vietnam and met with victims of the killer chemical substance. She witnessed the negative impacts of Agent Orange/dioxin on people’s health as well as the long-term effects of the toxic chemical, which are still evident more than 30 years after the end of the war.

According to the director, the film expresses the international community’s condemnation of the US administration’s attitude and the irresponsibility of companies involved in the production and supply of the toxic chemical.

Throughout the film, the director emphasises the courage shown by the Agent Orange victims and their families in spite of the difficulties they face, thanks to their will, and the love and sharing that surrounds them.

The 26 th international film festival, which took place in Paris from November 19-25, attracted 87 films from 37 countries.-

The Vietnam Agent Orange Victims’ Association (VAVA) has raised almost 1 billion VND nationwide in preparation of the Day for Agent Orange/dioxin Victims (August 10).

VAVA Deputy General Secretary Tran Xuan Thu on July 29 kicked off a series of celebrations for the event with a visit to victims in northern Ha Tay province, bringing them gifts worth 300,000 VND each.

The association has planned to visit the Friendship Village also in Ha Tay province, the Peace Village in Hanoi and other charity centres which are providing care for A/O victims in Ha Nam and Nam Dinh province, all in the north.

In addition, charity art performances and sport competitions will be held to raise fund for the victims.

They include an art programme themed “Justice and the Heart” to be held at the Hanoi Opera House on August 9 which will be live broadcast on the VTV Channel 1.

Also on the agenda is a golf tournament on August 9 and an art exchange night at the Friendship Cultural Palace in Hanoi on August 9, broadcast live by the VTV1 station.

The Hanoi VAVA chapter will mark the event with a meeting on August 10 with municipal and ministry leaders as well as industry executives. The anniversary will culminate in the handover of gifts to 150 victims.

Similar practical celebrations are expected to spread nationwide such as in oil-rich Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, where 215 victims will receive gifts each worth 300,000 VND and a charity gala night will be broadcast on television.

The southern province of Ben Tre will present 1,000 victim families with gifts, including 150 wheel-chairs, and grant scholarships to 17 child victims with high academic records.

The northern mountainous province of Ha Giang will issue charity lottery “In support of Agent Orange Victims” and hold a charity gala night to raise fund for local victims.

Vinh Long province in the Mekong Delta expects to raise between 600 and 800 million VND to help improve victims’ living conditions while the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa will provide free medical check-ups and treatment for over 300 victims.-